


Don’t die, okay?

by NormalApplepieLife



Category: Daybreak (2019)
Genre: Apocalypse, Betrayal, Bisexuality, Coming of Age, Crushes, Dom/sub Undertones, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Falling In Love, Flirting, Fluff and Angst, Idiots in Love, Leadership, Love Confessions, Loyalty, M/M, Past Abuse, Sexual Tension, Young Love, submissive Josh Wheeler
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-01-05 22:48:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21216320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NormalApplepieLife/pseuds/NormalApplepieLife
Summary: (SPOILERS FOR SHOW!!!)Because Eli deserved so so much better and Josh had absolutely no chemistry with Sam and I need a better ending damn it.Josh spent the entirety of the apocalypse so far looking for one Sam Dean. He was so focused on finding and saving her that he didn’t realize how attached he’d gotten to his new friendsSpecifically Eli fucking Cardashyan.Yeah, I don’t know how it happened either, but somehow the little asshole became important to me.And he’s making me rethink my entire life.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So for the purpose of this story, Josh is a virgin and Sam Dean is an asshole. And ELI IS ALIVE AS HE DESERVES TO BE.

Shit, shit, _shit_! Eli, _no_!

Eli’s hand pulled away from his stomach, dark red and so terribly, horrifically wet. _No_. His hand started to shake and when he looked up at me, his clear blue eyes held pure and raw emotion- none of his usual bravado. 

Fear. Something I’d never seen him show for real. Eli was like a fungus; once you got rid of it, it came back stronger than ever. He had a knack for surviving and getting out of tough situations. He’d slowly started to earn my respect. 

I rolled my eyes at him and nobody ever took him seriously, but that was because of his personality, not his abilities. I thought he was actually pretty fucking smart. Not that I’d admit it to _anyone_.

I had one rule in the apocalypse and one goal. Don’t get attached to anyone and find Sam.

I dropped to my knees and pulled Eli’s head into my lap, pressing my hands firmly against his dripping wound. Fucking Hoyles! I could still hear his distant screaming and begging from where he was pinned under the gigantic pug and couldn’t stop the dark, twisted part of me from being satisfied. He hurt Eli. I was _glad_ he was getting hurt in return. 

Only _I_ was allowed to fuck with Eli. 

Shaking the disturbing thought away, I started to panic when the wound wouldn’t stop bleeding. “_Fuck_. Okay. No, you’re gonna be fine, okay? I got you.”

I felt wetness roll down my cheek and Eli’s eyes met mine and widened. He looked so scared and small all of a sudden and I screamed for help, knowing that nobody would come. I swallowed thickly, glancing in the direction that had Sam waiting before I clenched my jaw and took a deep breath. 

I couldn’t believe I was about to do this. Seven months of fighting and surviving and searching were about to go down the drain. All for fucking Eli, of all people. The jerk who had tried to kill me, _twice_, and purposely antagonized me. When had I suddenly considered him as someone important to me? I thought I hated him. I thought he was a pest that I just couldn’t get rid of. Like an annoying, temperamental puppy that wouldn’t leave me alone. 

And then I thought of that first day, when he’d saved me from the ghoulie. _”You’d better be worth it._

Take away the apocalypse, the mall, and both of our bravados and we were... scary similar. Trying to be something we’re not, into really nerdy stuff, terrified of fighting and conflict, possessive of what we considered ours, loners, survivors- the list went on. Our ‘Pokémon game’ was the first genuine, innocent fun I’d had since the start of this whole apocalypse. He’d looked at me and smiled and for that one second, I couldn’t look away. I’d smiled back and ignored the weird tingling that popped up in my stomach. I couldn’t help but wish that he’d smile like that more, without the fake ass “swag” bullshit. 

I noticed that he had really long eyelashes and it sorta made him look like he was wearing eyeliner, which made his eyes look even bluer and, um-

And now he was dying in my arms and I just found myself desperate to make him smile like that again. 

“J-josh.” He choked out and I could feel him trembling in my arms. He was so, _so_ afraid of dying. I knew him too well after sharing the same space as him for weeks. 

“Just, when you get to the high school....”

“Anything!”

“You touch my magic gathering cards and I will haunt your ass. You don’t wanna fuck with paranormal Eli. I’m terrifying as shit.” His voice was shaking. 

That bravado again, even while in terrible pain and fear. And then his head lulled to the side and I felt my stomach drop. 

No!!

But his chest kept rising and falling and I realized that he was just passed out from the blood loss. I shrugged my shirt off and wrapped it around his stomach wound before gently putting him inside the cage. Fucked up, but I couldn’t carry him and drive. 

And I fucking _booked_ it back to the mall. To my tribe. 

“Hold on Eli.”

Eli didn’t talk about his dad. 

It wasn’t that he was ashamed. Lots of kids got smacked around by their parents, so what? It wasn’t like he needed to vent about it or anything 

_Not that he ever got the chance._

It wasn’t that people hated him, he’d had acquaintances and a place to sit at lunch, but that was about it. People tolerated him and used him for homework answers, but nobody ever asked how his day was going or if he was happy. 

(Contrary to popular belief post-apocalypse, Eli was fucking smart, okay? It just wasn’t something he liked having people know.)

Nobody cared enough about him to. 

So if he had a couple of bruises, people maybe quirked an eyebrow, but he was just a stranger and nobody gave it a second glance. 

Josh and him had hardly crossed paths. The boy was never mean to him but didn’t go out of his way to be nice either. In fact, they both hardly realized the other existed. 

They passed each other in the halls and that was the extent of their interaction. All they knew about each other was random observations and gossip. 

Eli wondered, if things were different and they’d somehow been friends, if Josh would have asked about the bruises. Josh was a relatively good guy. He would have asked how Eli’s day was. And maybe they could have...

No. His father would say “daydreaming is for faggots,” and try to backhand those distant dreams right out of his son’s head. So Eli hid his card collection and his personal thoughts and created an armor to defend himself. 

He played a cocky, confident douchebag. It wasn’t his fault if he actual became one. 

He knew he had a few screws loose. 

When the apocalypse had happened, he’d panicked and- like the little faggot he was, he ran and hid in the mall. He’d booby trapped the shit out of that place but he hadn’t ever been overly street-smart and he knew if someone was really determined to take it from him then they’d be able to. 

So he got clever. He used every trick from TV he could think of and created a Triumph costume so he could go out on supply runs without others attacking him. 

He would never be beaten down again. 

And then his old, forbidden wet-dream-on-legs had showed up at his door and he’d panicked. 

_Faggot._

His dead dad’s words rang in his ears, even now, and he’d tried so hard to shake Josh away, to get him to just _leave_. To get them all to leave him alone. He sneered and brushed it off, but every time someone scoffed at him or looked at him like he was dirt, it was like his dad was hitting him all over again. 

And when _Josh_ looked at him like that it made bile rise in his chest and anger spike in his chest. Sam, Sam, _Sam_! Just like in school, she was all he ever thought about, even half a year after seeing her last! What was so god damn special about her?! He put her on a pedestal, remembering only her best qualities as the rotten ones faded away with time and rejection 

God, the stupid idiot was so fucking loyal. 

He (loved) hated that. 

Josh Wheeler was too nice for this fucked up world and way, _way_ too nice for Sam Dean. 

That shady, backstabbing bitch. Josh had never experienced her nasty side, the one that would hurt you to make sure that she never got hurt. 

Eli lived almost his whole life here. He saw her arrive and saw what she became shortly after. 

Eli spied on people- it’s what he’d always done. Know your enemy because blackmail was the best way to defend yourself. He knew the truth about Sam but he couldn’t bring himself to tell Josh. He knew it could have gotten him back into the mall, could have stopped Josh from going on a suicide mission. But he’d hoped that maybe, on this fool’s errand, Josh would see that Sam was with the jocks _willingly_, the little snake, and he would go back to the mall in one piece and let Eli back in too. 

Maybe he’d be thankful and...

But instead, a dumb as fuck ex-jock had stabbed him in the stomach and Josh flipping wheeler held Eli tight and cried for him. He hadn’t ever had someone care about him before, much less _cry_ over him. 

Having Josh Wheeler’s undivided attention and care was a bit breathtaking, and Eli couldn’t understand how Sam never appreciated it. 

And here Josh was, stopping his mission to try and help the pathetic, loser Eli who just antagonized and provoked him. 

Eli hated that he liked Josh. Eli hated himself and his feelings and his dad, but he really liked how Josh’s arms made him feel ironically safe and comforted. 

The proof was falling from Josh’s eyes. Someone fucking cared about Eli. For the first time fucking _ever_. And here he was, dying like a loser. 

Eli didn’t look away from Josh’s pretty face before the lights went out. It was almost peaceful. 

Waking up, not so much.


	2. Under the...giraffe?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eli reveals some shocking news and Joshy can’t stop blushing

“How is he?” I bit at my nails. 

Eli has been out for a few days and had maggots on his wound to keep it clean. KJ shrugged and handed me the wrappings before leaving without a word. I felt terrible for what I’d done to her but couldn’t find the words to apologize, especially not now. I’d blown her off when she’d made a come on to me and it had resulted in an incredibly awkward silence afterwards. 

She deserved a whole apology, not one where I was so distracted that I couldn’t focus on anything except one thing: Eli. 

I sighed and cleared the bugs away before disinfecting the gash again and wrapping it up in gauze. Infection had set it but luckily I’d found extra antibiotics from Angelica and Wes’ trip. His fever was starting to break, but I wet a washcloth and dabbed away the sweat on his forehead. It wasn’t burning to touch anymore, thank god, but it was far warmer than what was normal. 

“So I sent out patrols to look for Angelica and Wes. All anyone has found is rumors and fucked up gossip. Principle Burr isn’t locked up anymore, which is terrifying. I should’ve killed him when I had the chance.” 

I slowly, carefully dribbled water in between his lips and tilted his head back so he would swallow.

“Wes is taking care of Turbo at my place. Ironic, huh? ...Thought you might find that funny too. Um, the jocks have a new leader though, which is kind of terrifying. KJ won’t talk to me and the Daybreakers officially elected me as leader. They just kind of started calling me that and I gotta tell you, I’m freaking out man. You know I’m no leader.” 

I sighed and ghosted my hand over his limp fingers, feeling an odd thrill when I intertwined our pinky fingers.

“You were right. I’m a _douche_, man. I kicked my friends out, I was so mean to Sam that day the bomb went off, my dad died thinking that I hated him...” I bit my lips and swallowed hard. “Fuck man, I could never say this to your face, but I actually miss you. Just... don’t die, okay?”

I squeezed Eli’s hand before standing up to get back to business. 

And... was immediately jerked back. Looking down, I saw that Eli’s hand had tightened around my own. 

Tentative hope soured through me. 

“Eli? Are you awake? C’mon man, stop being a dick and just wake up.”

A pause where I held my breath. 

“_Please_.”

A longer pause before my shoulders slumped. It was probably just an involuntary reaction, he was-

A mumble. My eyes shot to the sleeping boy’s face and I smiled, seeing his lips moving and trying to form words. I leaned closer.

“I can’t hear, what are you trying to say?”

Eli’s piercing blue eyes cracked open and his lips quirked into a small smile. “Like the sound of you begging.”

His voice was rough and groggy but held that signature cocky Eli tone.

A confusing spike of warmth appeared in my stomach and I felt my cheeks heat up randomly. I ignored it and rolled my eyes, pretending like I wasn’t feeling faint with relief. I very gently shoved at his shoulder and rolled my eyes but couldn’t stop the smile on my lips. 

“Asshole. Yeah, you’re gonna be just fine. Back to your annoying self in no time.” 

Eli’s tired eyes looked around dazedly, a light, confused frown appearing. “We’re... at the mall? Y’re not kicking me out?” 

I shrugged and avoided his eyes. “Well, our mission was a total failure since _somebody_ decided to go and get shish kabobbed. Thought we could just call it a draw.”

He stared at me and those <s>pretty</s> stupid blue eyes made my body feel all flushed. He squinted. 

“Y’re fuckin’ blushing.”

“No I’m not!” I wanted to look away but, for some reason, I really couldn’t look away from him. 

“You tot’lly are! Aweee is lilJoshy embarrassed that he cares about the E-man? Face it- you liiiike me.” Eli had a cocky, teasing smile on and in the past I would have been annoyed or angry. 

But now I saw the insecurity in his eyes, the way he had moved one hand to rest near his wound and how he was breathing just a little shallowly. He was still frightened and in pain and he was falling back into familiar banter to desperately grasp at normalcy. His shoulder had slumped in relief when he noticed that he was back in the mall and that made something ugly and guilty in me twist. 

He didn’t want to look weak. 

I felt something loosen in my chest and realized that my hand was still held tightly in his, our fingers intertwined. 

I didn’t move away. 

My cheeks heated even more and I knew that there had to be a clear pink flush on them. 

Was I embarrassed? It was just _Eli_ and he needed some comfort, needed a friend right now. So why was my palm tingling in a not entirely unpleasant way? 

Eli smirked when he saw my blush deepen and I cleared my throat. “So, um. Yeah. Just, try not to overthrow me? I don’t want to be the leader, but...”

“You don’t want to let them down.” His voice was quiet, the smallest of smiles on his face. “Wanna know what I noticed?”

I tilted my head and raised an eyebrow. “Do I?”

His lips quirked. 

“You’re a coward on your own.” He said quietly, but not in a mean way. He was frowning in thought. “But you’re brave as hell when you have people relying on you.”

“What?” I blinked. 

He shrugged and I noticed the small flush of pink on his cheeks. “You’re a good leader. Just don’t be stupid and stop running off after a fairy tale.” 

Sam. Fuck, I hadn’t even thought of her at all today, too concerned with Eli’s health. I honestly didn’t know what to think about that. I shook my head. 

“I can’t just _leave_ her there, Eli. She needs me!” 

He snorted and got a weird expression on his face. 

“Let it be known that the E-Man tried to protect you.” His shoulders were drawn up defensively but his voice was shaking, despite the mocking tone. 

“I... I wanted you to see for yourself.” He sighed and rolled his eyes. “But, well, apparently that’s not gonna happen and if you try that bullshit again _you_ might get stabbed, you fucking turd, and-“

“_Eli._”

“Right, sorry. Just- go to FYE, in the back under the giant stuffed giraffe there’s a thumb drive. Watch it.”

I frowned, not liking the sinking feeling in my stomach. What did he mean?

“See for myself? What the hell Eli, is this another one of your games? I’m really not in the mood right now.” 

He squeezed my hand before letting go. “Just watch it okay? I really am sorry, Josh. Just try not to freak out and remember- you see the best in people, even when you’re being a dickwad. That’s not a bad thing.” 

And then he looked away and closed his eyes, basically saying ‘End of conversation.’

What was he taking about? Thumb drive?! 

What had he discovered?

••••••••••••DAYBREAK•••••••••••••

I sat in my “room,” which was a mattress I’d dragged from sears to the semi-spacious game-stop. People had started claiming private areas and even _decorating_. The group I’d rescued from Burr was starting to make this place their home- they were making the situation permanent. 

The ‘meeting area’ was the food court, they’d cleared out the American Eagle and started collecting all the fun things from others stores: a pool table, fuseball, gaming stations, pinball machines, and made that the designated game room. Then there was the weapons room, the gym, the sparring area, meditation room, etc. 

It was really starting to feel... comfortable. Homey. 

I hated it. I never planned on any of this being long-term, much less me creating and building my own tribe. It was just nuts! I was a C student who barely managed surviving on my own. I couldn’t even find one single person! No matter how hard I’d tried. 

What made these people trust me with their lives? 

I saved them once, but it was a fluke and I hadn’t gone there with the intention of saving anyone. It had been a side-effect of my quest for revenge. 

I burrowed into my pillow nest, fingering the flash drive in my hand. A newly-charged laptop sat beside me and I groaned. Why didn’t I just put it in? 

What do you think? Was Eli just yanking my chain, like he normally did? To psych me out, to play a prank? To work me up over nothing? 

But the sincerity in his eyes... hell, he’d almost looked _sad_.

I buried my face in my pillow and let out frustrated groan. I didn’t want to watch it. What was so bad that _Eli_ had been afraid to show me? About Sam? Eli hadn’t shown any signs of knowing Sam personally but, then again, I didn’t know much about the guy outside of mutually saving and then trying to kill each other half-heartedly. 

I’ll be the first to admit we had a weird relationship. Not exactly friends, not exactly enemies. At this point, I think it just depended on the day. 

At first, we almost ended up killing each other. Now, we would kill _for_ each other. 

It was just a joke. It had to be. I knew Sam, knew that she was the best person I’d ever met. Whatever was on this tape wouldn’t change my mind... right?

Right. 

Here we go. 

The tape that changed absolutely everything. 

Trees racing by, a school coming into view, a small drone with a camcorder strapped to the bottom raced toward its target carefully. 

Eli hated leaving his mall so he sent out his little helpful scout instead. People couldn’t kill a drone, much less figure out where it had come from. He’d been sure to scratch off all logos and evidence of the mall off. Blackmail had and would always make the world go round, as long as there were people still on it. Information was power and he’d always been so very powerless. 

The apocalypse let him become strong. 

He already had so much dirt on the different tribes and loners. He saw where the mutant pugs hung out and which places the ghoulies tended to gravitate towards. He got Triumph on tape, so clear that he was able to collect and make a replica of the costume. He used his knowledge to make himself _safe_.

His information kept him alive and well. 

But he had hardly anything on the jocks and he was bored today. One could only get a _mannequin_ to jack you off so many times before you got bored of it. Plus he was out of lotion again. 

He maneuvered the drone through a broken window and had it sit on the edge of a cluttered bookcase. If you didn’t look too close, then you wouldn’t even notice it. He kicked back, popped open a can of Dr. Thunder, and waited for something juicy to happen. 

Twenty six minutes later, he was snoring, his drink knocked over and getting his pant leg all sticky. And the action was being recorded on screen. Eli would be blissfully unaware until he woke up and played back the footage. 

He hit the mother-load, but wouldn’t realize that it would change his entire life until two months later. 

On screen, Turbo had come back into the room, which was clearly his, and two people followed behind him. Mona Lisa and Sam fucking Dean, who wasn’t bound in chains, gagged, or struggling in the slightest. At most, she had a sight frown on her face, but it was annoyed, not enraged. 

“Two ghoulie attacks in two days and six dead. John died last night, we couldn’t stop the bleeding.” Mona Lisa said, almost sounding bored. 

Turbo grunted. 

“Twelve are injured but they’ll be fine. Listen, people are starting to get antsy and I’ve heard the other tribes just got news about it. We can’t let them think you’re weak! Especially not after you let We-” 

Turbo grunted and whirled around to grab Mona Lisa’s neck, pinning her against the wall. He let out a threatening growl and the girl tightened her lips. 

And then Sam spoke up and changed the world. And it wasn’t to save it- no, she was doing the opposite of that. 

“Turbo, stop! She’s not wrong. People are starting to get scared and scared people will start to doubt you. You need to show them that you’re _not_ weak.”

Turbo let go of his second’s neck, seeming intrigued. 

Sam stepped forward carefully, an earnest look on her face. 

“You need to come up with something to boost morale. The concerts are fun, a good distraction, but people need more than that. They need structure, something to fear. Something to get them to be more careful and listen to your rules. Nobody can be a leader without instilling a little fear. I- okay, have you ever heard of the coliseum?”

The jock grunted in affirmation, looking confused. 

Sam had a spark behind her eyes, one of a brilliant idea hatching. She’d had the same spark in the video of her complementing people that day in the mall... but this wasn’t kind. This was a bad idea, a horribly cruel and unnecessary idea that would end up killing so many people. 

Fucking American Ninja Idol. 

The sick torture, where jocks made people preform for them before cheering while they were torn to pieces by the dead right in front of them. Like the coliseum... but one specifically designed to torture the accused with no chance of escape or redemption. A scare-tactic, one that fostered and fed the monstrous side of humanity that had been unlocked in the end of the world. 

_It has been Sam’s idea._

Josh watched as Sam sat there, voluntarily, with deranged psycho-killers, while smiling brightly at the sadistic ideas that were being created. She didn’t need saving, she’d _chosen_ to be with them, to become a monster along with the rest of the world. 

Josh has been chasing after a monster who didn’t want to be found. 

Tears leaked out of his eyes and he replayed the scene over and over. He couldn’t wrap his brain around this. Sam?! Kind, intelligent, unique, giving-compliments-to-strangers Sam planned out a torture method?! Not only that, but she’d been the one to suggest it!

And then Josh thought of that one day, when he’d been unable to have sex with her. When he’d called her a whore. 

She’d been so angry and assertive; it had come out of nowhere. She’d transformed into someone kind of sexy yet terrifying in a matter of minutes. 

When you think about it, she’d always had a seed of darkness in her. 

The apocalypse had just let that seed grow.


	3. Rules are BORING.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More of like setting up the Tribe cause they seemed like a mess in the show. Also, Eli is cute.

It turns out that aggressively painting a roof is a good way to vent your anger. 

After the biggest bomb to ever drop on my head had fucking exploded in my face, I’d screamed loudly into my pillow, carefully put the thumb drive back under that stupid giraffe, and calmly made my way up to the ceiling with a duffel bag full of spray paint. 

And proceeded to tag my tribe’s logo on every surface in every fucking color imaginable until there was no more room. By the time i was done, it was way past dark and I sat on the ledge, looking out into the empty city full of psychos and mutant people-eaters and _evil backstabbers._

At least I knew where my priorities laid now. 

I didn’t want to think of Samaira and what she’d participated in, what she was _still apart of._ It made me sick. 

I still had never murderer another human being. I honestly don’t think I could. Even when faced with Principle Burr in all of his kid-eating evil insanity, I couldn’t bring myself to kill him in cold blood. I still had my humanity. 

I thought... I really thought I’d loved her. I’d had this picture of us in my head, of me finding her and apologizing for calling her names and she’d come live with me and we’d kick the apocalypse’s ass together and everything would be okay again. But that pipe dream was shattered now and I realized what an absolute dick-wad I’d been because of my idiotic devotion to an apparent sociopath. 

Had our relationship ever been real? Had she ever cared about me? If the jocks had caught me... would I have been murdered in her twisted game? Would she have passively watched me get devoured by ghoulies?!

...Would she have cared?

I felt bile rising in my throat and had to take a deep breath to calm down. I had to focus on something else, I had to push her out of my mind. 

I had a tribe now, at least. I was suddenly so grateful they hadn’t let me go off on my own and push everyone away like I’d originally wanted to. I had people to fall back on, I had somewhere to permanently live and I didn’t have to only talk to you guys, anymore. 

I had... Eli. 

As weird as that was. 

I wasn’t sure if I could find Angelica and I wasn’t sure if her or Wes would come back even if I begged... but Eli had come back again and again like a human boomerang and I was struck with how weirdly grateful I was for that. And how doubly grateful I was that he’d survived a whole ass knife to his stomach. It was pretty badass, not that I’d ever tell _him_ that. I was surprised to realize that I didn’t want him out of my life. 

I hoped he recovered soon, stupid jokes and dirty mind included. I just wanted him to be okay again. I stayed up in that roof until the sun set and I had to go back down to reality. 

My crazy, fucked up reality. 

I had a tribe to lead, after all. 

“Alllright!” I shouted to the group gathered below me. I was standing on a table. I absolutely refused to have a stupid throne like Turbo. I was a leader, not a king with a ginormous ego. 

“You guys wanted me to lead you? Well, you got it. I promise, no more going off on my own, no more antagonizing the other tribes, no more bullshit. But that means that our play-time is _over._ We need to start scouting and gathering supplies and setting up our borders. We’re gonna have jobs and duties and we’re going to make sure fucking _no one_ can hurt us again! We are survivors. We’re Daybreakers!” 

They cheered and clapped and I took a deep breath, surprised when I saw Eli leaning heavily against a beam outside of the ‘infirmary.’ I couldn’t read his face. 

I cleared my throat and tried to get back on the topic. 

“Okay, guess that means we’re all in agreement. First off, I’m not gonna be a dictator. That shit is stupid, and never works. I’ll come up with the ideas and then we vote on it. I’m _not_ making anyone do something they don’t agree with. Sound good?” I saw encouraging nods and people were starting to smile now. 

I’d been nervous as hell to do this. I still had absolutely no idea what I was doing, but I figured we might as well start with creating some kind of society. We needed rules, jobs, punishments- we needed order. 

I thought fondly of when I just traveled on my own and did whatever I wanted before shaking that thought away. 

I sat down cross legged on the table and shrugged. “This is probably gonna take a while. You guys should sit too, and maybe get snacks. 

I risked another glance at Eli and his lips had quirked up. His face was soft and he looked.... kinda proud, to be honest. 

Maybe he’d finally stop trying to take his mall back. 

Way too many hours later and we finally had the start of a tribe. We’d figured out peoples skills and I’d given people their jobs based on that. So we had the Docs (people in charge of finding medicine and learning all they could about it. If Eli taught us anything, it was that we needed to be way more prepared. A girl named Star had been elected their leader). Then we had the Guard (the strongest of us and the people who knew their way around a weapon. They were in charge of patrolling and enforcing the perimeter. A boy named Drake had been elected their leader). And finally there was the Zaps (who were the fastest and cleverest. Their job was to find non-perishable food in unclaimed territory and look into ways of growing our own food.)

After we had the roles figured out, we came up with a system of law. It was clear that nobody enjoyed this, but no one wanted a repeat of what had happened with Wes, Eli, and Angelica. And we were all too aware that people could go crazy. We needed to be ready so we were caught off-guard. 

The rules were as follows:  
1\. Stealing, purposely hurting each other, and not doing your work (being lazy) got you 3 days in Kids Gap Jail with Frozen and Sesame Street blasting on repeat. You would only be served canned beets and other rejected vegetables.  
2\. Murder, attempted murder, betraying your tribe to anyone, and other traitorous behavior got you a trial with the options of banishment and (in only the absolute worst cases and I hoped it never came out) public execution. And that was only if there was enough concrete evidence.   
3\. Anyone who wanted to call a meeting would ring the bell on top of the table I was sitting on.   
4\. If anyone wanted to join our tribe, we would have a meeting and vote on it. They would be on ‘watch’ for a week until they proved themselves trustworthy. 

And that’s about it. Four rules that I thought were simply but fair. And, for the last order of business. 

“Alright guys! Great work, I promise this is the last thing. I was thinking, if you want me to lead, I should probably have, like, a vice-leader right? Like the person I trust the most, who helps me make decisions. And we all know anyone can die at any tome, so if I die you guys would need someone who could step up immediately.”

I saw a few nods and people were tilting their heads, contemplating.

“So, I was thinking. I’ve only known you guys for a little while, but there’s someone here who I’ve known for a while. He’s kind of a mess, but he’s really proved himself to me and I trust him.” I looked up, meeting Eli’s eyes. He was frowning, but in puzzlement. 

“I want Eli to be my second-in-command. He took a knife in the gut for me, and I could actually see him as a leader. All in favor?” 

Almost everyone’s hand went up and KJ, after rolling her eyes, followed as well. 

“Then we’re done here. Let get to work guys!”

I hopped down and made my way over to Eli, whose eyes were wide open and his mouth was gaping. I laughed. 

“What, is the _great Eli_ not up to the challenge?” 

He snapped out of it. “What?! Dude. No! I mean, of course you’d pick me. I’m the obvious choice. None of these losers could do half as dope a job as me. I’m totally a great leader. Still don’t know why they’d want your weird ass, but maybe they’re just as crazy as you.”

Instead of getting mad, I finally realized what his words were. A defense. I could see how grateful and genuinely surprised he was and he was trying to hide it his cocky and slightly offensive words. 

Rolling my eyes, I gently but firmly brought him into a hug. 

“I wouldn’t trust anyone else to be my second, Eli.” 

He tended for a second before I felt his body melt and his arms wrapped carefully around mine. I ignored the way my stomach started flip-flopping. I was probably hungry, couldn’t even remember what I ate last. 

“Of course not. Knew you’d finally come around, Wheeler. I’m awesome.” 

I huffed out a laugh and let him go, ignoring how cold it suddenly got. His face contradicted his words, looking all soft and sweet and confused. 

“_You_ need to rest up before you can do anything. C’mon, let’s get you back in bed. I’ll bring ya something to eat.”

Yeah, gotta say guys, I _never_ pictured my life going this way. But I really can’t say that I hate it. 

Things could always be worse. 

_Far away_

“Im working on it dude! I can’t read this stupid language, it takes time!” Angelica shouted. 

Her hands shook, but she couldn’t show her fear. Burr was sipping something pinkish red out of a cup and she _really_ didn’t wanna know who that was. 

“Make it happen soon, girl! I’m growing impatient.”


	4. Shut up, Josh

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it’s been so long! My grandpa was diagnosed with cancer so I’ve been dealing with that but things finally calmed down 
> 
> Thanks for the patience and feedback!
> 
> Longer chapters will be coming soon.

What’s up, turds?!

Oh, did you think this was just Josh’s story? Hell naw, you don’t only get to hear him bitching and whining over his misplaced trust in a sociopath and him pussy-footing about being a leader. 

It’s Eli’s time to shine. 

Gotta say though, him picking me to be his co-leader or whatever was obviously the right choice. Unexpected as hell, but clearly the only good decision. I didn’t expect   
_Josh Wheeler_ to realize that on his _own._

He was...surprising. Still a sensitive bitch and I wanted to punch him half the time, but he was turning out to be kind of an okay leader and he was a hell of a Pokémon player, so I wasn’t gonna complain too much. 

He asked me yesterday if I still had that drone and my second ‘job’ was to scout areas before we sent the Zaps in. 

Ugh, I missed when I had this nice, big ass mall all to myself. It’d been so much more peaceful. 

I was glad I didn’t succeed in killing Josh, though. I guess. He was kind of an all right dude now. Even if he was weirdly clingy. 

Which was, again, _unexpected._ And if I was being honest with myself, not unwelcome. 

He’d grown really fond of touching me lately. Whenever he saw me, his eyes would light up and he’d make a beeline for me, throwing an arm around my shoulder, giving me a hug, touching my arm, poking me. 

<s>I didn’t want it to stop.</s> It was annoying as hell. Did he not understand the concept of personal space?

“Eli!” Speak of the devil. 

“Sup?” 

“Can you send droney (and honestly Josh, learn how to name things better, idiot) to spy on The Jocks? Drake said his people were tagging that side of the border and haven’t seen anyone, said their border hardly even looked touched.”

I rolled my eyes. “They’re jocks, idiot. They probably forgot they even _have_ borders. Probably busy fucking and killing each other, probs in that order.”

Josh scrunched up his nose <s>cutely</s>. “Dude, gross.”

“Oh fuck off, you know it’s true! They’re probably getting their freak on right now! Hey, wanna watch with me?! Could be free porn.” I winked and thrusted my hips teasingly at Josh.

I noticed the way his cheeks lit up pink _<s>god, I’d missed that color on him</s>_ and how his eyes darted down to look at my hips. I let out a cocky laugh, pinching his cheeks. 

“Awe sorry Joshy, didn’t mean to get you all _excited._”

“Shut up, Eli.” He blushed brighter. 

My grin grew. This was _fun._

“Joshyyy. Come on, man. You’re such a prude! Come watch some raunchy, gross jock porn. We can make fun of their tiny dicks togetherrr. See if it’s true that they’re really four pump chumps!” 

“Dude, graphic.” He muttered, not meeting my eyes.

I laughed. “For real, dude. I swear it’s like you’re a virgin or something-“

I stopped when I saw his blush get so bad that his whole face looked flush. And he wouldn’t meet my eyes, unlike his normal stupidly self-confident self. Was he...?

“Holy _shitballs!_ Youreavirgin! Josh Wheeler is a fucking virgin!”

“Shut up, Eli!” He shouted and put a hand over my mouth. 

I licked it and cackled when he did that scrunchy thing with his noise and pulled his hand away, shaking it like it had cooties. I poked his pink cheeks and laughed louder when he tried to squirm away, fighting a smile on his lips. 

Damn, I was glad I hadn’t killed him. I liked making him smile. 

_”Faggot.”_

_Shut the fuck up, dad._

End of the world and I still couldn’t get that asshole out of my head. Figures. You can’t ever really escape your past, can you?

“So, oh mighty leader, think you can chillax a little so I can pown your ass in fuseball? I promise I’ll be all responsible and send- ugh- Droney our later.” 

“Oh, you’re _so_ on.” 

He shot me a wicked grin. “Race ya!”He took off. 

“I can’t fucking run, asshole!” I shouted. 

He just shit a one fingered salute to me, laughing as he ran off ahead of me. 

“Fuck you Wheeler, that’s my bit!” 

I shook my head but couldn’t wipe the grin off my face. What an idiot.


	5. Be calm, Josh. BE CALM.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The drums of war start to beat

_Eliii. Back to me now? Thought I was the one telling this story._

_In your dreams, Wheeler._

_Oh, fuck off._

It was nearing sunset when shit went bananas. 

I was helping the Docs organize their supplies when a Zap came running into the infirmary, panting like he’d just run five miles. Turns out? He had. 

“Woah, easy Jake. What’s wrong?” I grabbed the kid’s upper arm, letting the boy lean on me. 

“Angeli- she’s... she- and princi- _Burr_\- he- MISSILE!”

“Slow down dude, breathe. Hey, c’mon, breathe with me.”

We took a deep few deep breaths together until the poor guy wasn’t about to keel over. 

“Now, _calmly_ tell me what’s wrong.”

“Okay, okay. _Fuck._ Burr has a rocket missile thing! Eli used his drone and we couldn’t see signs of the jocks anywhere so we went to a few stores in their territory and we saw _Burrwithafuckingrocket!_ He has Angelica working on it!”

“_What?!_”

I blinked and shook my head. I was used to a whole load of crazy, but honestly- What the hell? One week of peace, was that too much to ask?

Apparently. 

“Josh, what do we do? Drake sent me to ask you. Do you think Burr’s gonna...?” The kid’s voice was trembling and his eyes were wide, looking at me like I held all the answers. 

He looked like he was barely 13. 

“_Shit._ Okay, Jake, calm down.” 

I was most definitely _not_ calm, but if we all panicked then nothing would get done. Leaders never showed their own fear, right? Fuck, why was I leader again? Terrible choice. Truly terrible decision on their part. 

Jake’s wide eyes bore into me, waiting for me to fix everything. 

<s>Sometimes I really regret saving these people.</s>

“Go back to Drake, tell him I’m calling a meeting in 15 minutes. We’ll figure this out.”

The Zap nodded rapidly, but I grabbed his arm before he could turn around. I could feel him shaking. 

“And Jake?”

Wide, scared eyes. I smiled confidently. 

“We’re gonna be fine, don’t worry. Just chill out and breathe. Have I let you down yet?”

The kid’s shoulders seemed to deflate and he gave me a smile before running off. Well shit. I knew I should’ve killed that _turd_ when I had the chance.

...And now I’m turning into Eli. 

_Jesus, what else could go wrong?_

15 minutes later I plopped myself down on my table and flipped the switch to broadcast the meeting bell through the mall speakers. All while trying to figure out what the hell I was going to say- what we were going to do. Should we even do anything?

Everyone eventually gathered in front of me and Eli came hobbling up to sit next to me. I didn’t realize how tense I’d been until his comforting presence was next to mine and I felt the weight lifting off my shoulders. His face was pinched, little lines forming where his brows were drawn together in a frown. When he made eye contact with me, though, he relaxed just like I had and his lips quirked. 

“Alright.” I said loudly and clapped my hands together. “Soo, we have a problem and I called this meeting so we can all talk about it and figure out what we wanna do about it. We all know the Jocks haven’t been around lately; it turns out that Burr has them... _and_ a missile.”

I paused to let that sink in. I could see the mixture of fear and anger that bristled my tribe when his name was said. 

“So what?” A kid called out.

“_So_ he’s not smart enough to know what to do with it. But Angelica is and guess who has her held captive? We all know what these missiles did last time and I really don’t want to push my luck a second time. Who knows what we could mutate into if we don’t stop it.”

“You think he’s going to make her arm it? Use it on us?” Star asked, worried. 

“Definitely. But we don’t know why, or what he’s doing with the jocks, or what his plan is. I think our first goal is to learn more before charging in. I know Burr scares a lot of you; I know he hurt you. He scares me too. But I also know whatever he’s planning isn’t going to be good for us and I made a promise to try and keep you all safe. All of us, _together_, we have a chance to stop him.”

I let them digest that and I curled my hands into fists to stop them from shaking. Eli had been suspiciously quiet so far and I wondered what was going on in his head. 

“I think we should send a scouting team, find out what’s going on, and go from there. If it doesn’t affect us, then we ignore it. If it does...”

“Then we take that fucknut _down!_” And there Eli was. His obnoxious tone broke the tense air in the room and I heard a few snorts. 

“Let’s put it to a vote. Who’s for it?” 

Nobody raised their hand for a moment and I almost panicked, thinking that I was going to end up going alone. But then KJ rolled her eyes and raised her hand, nodding at me. “Burr needs to go down.” And I knew then that she had forgiven me for blowing off her advances. She could be scary when she wanted to be. 

Drake raised his hand next. “I’m with you, Josh.”

More and more people’s hands started shooting into the air, speaking their support and solidarity. I was a little in awe, expecting no more than a handful to stand with me. This was almost everyone, barring a few younger, fearful kids. 

Eli looked at me and dramatically groaned, rolling his eyes when he halfway raised his hand. “I guessss I’m in. No way you can pull _this_ off without your best asset.”

Despite his attitude, his eyes were warm and I could see him fighting off that bright smile I’d grown grudgingly fond of. <s>Right there, in that moment, I wanted to pull him into a hug and thank him for not leaving me.</s>

I cleared my throat and look out on my people. “I know this is scary. I know it sucks. But we all survived the end of the world and _look at us_. We’re _thriving_. We built this tribe out of nothing, all because of chance. You know, I think we’re pretty damn lucky. We’re all survivors. Burr? He’s just an overachieving ghoulie with a bad attitude. He’s _not_ unbeatable.”

I nodded. 

“We can do this.”

_Dude, we’re so screwed._

_Shut up, Eli._


End file.
